October 6, 2010

Buyer of Harper superfractor adds to his collection of rare refractors

The Washington Nationals drafted Harper as their top overall pick in June out of junior college. His 2010 Bowman Chrome USA Baseball superfractor 1/1 recently sold for $12,500.

A tremendous price for a baseball card no doubt, but the buyer Aaron Marcus of Long Island, N.Y., had no problem putting out that kid of cash.

He became interested in Harper when he read about him in a Sports Illustrated cover story.

“He has been referred to as a once-in-a-generation talent and a more talented high school baseball player than Alex Rodriguez, Justin Upton and Ken Griffey Jr.,” Marcus said in an email. “I feel as though the sky is the limit with him. He also has a tremendous work-ethic, and is a hard-nosed baseball player that plays with intensity.”

As a New York Mets fans, Marcus started collecting his favorite players in the early 1980s and continued his collection with some of baseball’s best players. But like many young collectors, he left the hobby for a while before he came back in 2007 when he started a collection of Mets prospect Fernando Martinez.

“I really do not see the point in getting it graded as it is the only one that exists,” Marcus said. “I know that some people would probably disagree with this logic. I generally buy graded cards, but I don't send my cards in for grading.”

Here’s some more from Marcus:

Are there any other players, teams or sets you collect?
I mostly collect high-end Mets cards, as I am a huge Mets fan. I also collect Miguel Cabrera, Hanley Ramirez, Albert Pujols, and top prospects. I am also a fan of football cards, as well as UFC cards.

What made you want to get back into collecting?
I left the hobby for about 14 years. One day I started to look into collecting baseball cards again in 2007 when Fernando Martinez's cards came out (as I am a big Mets fan). I discovered all of the changes that took place in the hobby (as far as rare parallels being manufactured are concerned).

Besides the Harper superfractor, is there another card you're happy to own?
I have a bunch of cards that I am quite fond of. I have a few 2000 Topps Traded Miguel Cabrera Auto RCs that are graded BGS 9.5, a Bowman Chrome Albert Pujols Auto RC PSA 9, and a 2002 David Wright Gold Ref Auto RC.

4 comments:

Finally! Someone who gets the idea of grading. Someone get this guy a certificate, because he is on top of it better than most. Kudos to you Marcus, you are one person I actually want to hear more from.

Interesting profile of a collector!! I agree with Gellman on grading being a waste of time. It comes down to supply and demand! If a person is willing to sell a card for $100 and is offered $150 for that same card, they will sell it for $150!